Blueprint for One Water

Authors: Cindy Paulson, Wendy Broley, and Lynn Stephens

The One Water concept, an integrated planning and implementation approach to managing finite water resources, has been adopted by some, and is of great interest to many others, for its collaborative approach to achieving sustainable, reliable, and resilient water systems. Previous efforts helped set the stage for integrated water resources planning, but many utilities have identified the need for tactical steps or guidance to develop a One Water framework. This blueprint provides practical guidance for One Water or Integrated Water Management efforts, including a roadmap for integrating a multi-stakeholder planning process as well as lessons learned from a diverse group of municipalities and water professionals.

This blueprint includes:

• Critical steps to developing a One Water approach

• Case study examples describing how utilities have taken innovative

• Approaches to incorporate integrated water resources planning

• Methods for overcoming potential barriers and obstacles

• Key outcomes and milestones for each critical step

This document is intended to guide One Water planning processes and support utilities, cities, counties, municipalities, water professionals, and other stakeholders across multiple water resource sectors, including water supply, wastewater, reuse, watershed management, stormwater, and energy and resource recovery.

This blueprint was sponsored by Water Research Foundation (WRF) project 4660 and developed by Brown and Caldwell. The research methodology included an international survey with responses from more than 800 water professionals, more than ten one-on-one interviews, and a two-day international workshop with 35 water professionals.

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Source:  Water Research Foundation

Publication Year:  2017